Everyone has their predictions for Jayson Tatum and what will happen with the Celtics once he comes back, but not enough people are giving the team its proper respect, even without Tatum. On the most recent episode of the Kevin O’Connor Show, KOC and his guest, John Fanta, broke down their contender rankings, and O’Connor listed the Celtics as the team most likely to represent the East in the NBA Finals.
He praised Joe Mazzulla, Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, Neemias Queta, and others while talking about the team’s culture and relentless effort and belief, especially on the defensive end. He raved about how they’ve built a stable of young wing defenders who come at you in waves, hyping up Hugo Gonzalez, Baylor Scheierman, and Jordan Walsh.
O’Connor also pointed out how well the team has performed, not only without Tatum but without Brown, as they actually have an elite net rating this season, even when Brown is on the bench. It doesn’t make sense, but this team keeps defying the odds.
And while he did assume that Tatum will return, and said that is part of the reason for his choice, the conversation was about the Celtics team as we’ve seen them, and how it’s time to start buying in. On top of that, KOC pointed out the flaws with the other teams in the East and how the Cs are the only group with championship DNA.
His argument was so convincing that he seemingly talked Fanta into changing his rankings during the recording of the pod. Fanta came in with the Piston and Knicks at numbers one and two, but after hearing KOC’s case, and thinking about what he has seen, especially in the past couple of weeks, he conceded that the Celtics should be atop the list.
Celtics’ competition for East supremacy is extremely flawed
That may be the best argument in favor of this ragtag bunch from Boston; the other Eastern Conference contenders all have something to prove.
The team with the best record in the league, and the runaway one-seed, the Pistons, have almost zero experience winning playoff games. Cade Cunningham has emerged as an MVP candidate, but the secondary scoring and shooting options are very questionable.
The Knicks were favorites coming into the year, but there are still major question marks around a defense with Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns playing key roles, plus they haven’t really gelled with first-year coach Mike Brown at the helm.
The Cavaliers made the biggest splash at the trade deadline and have been hot lately, but are we really trusting James Harden in the playoffs? Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley have never been able to get that team past the second round, either.
The Celtics obviously have their own flaws and issues, but the further along we get in this season, the more it’s time to take them seriously as contenders and a real threat to win the East. And that’s regardless of whether Tatum comes back or not.